1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to a constant-quantity powder dispenser, and more particularly to a constant-quantity powder dispenser which is a main body accommodating a mass of a powdered, pulverized or granular material and which is arranged to deliver a predetermined constant quantity of the powdered, pulverized or granular material, by a shaking action of the main body.
2. Discussion of Related Art
As well known in the field of storing various powdered, pulverized or granular materials (hereinafter referred to as xe2x80x9cpowdered materialsxe2x80x9d) such as seasoning or flavoring materials or compositions and other powdered foods, and powdered chemicals or pharmaceuticals, there are used various types of powder dispensers each including a main body having an open end portion with an outlet opening through which the powdered material is delivered out of the main body. In use, the powder dispenser is vertically shaken or reciprocated to deliver the powdered material. Generally, such a powder dispenser is provided with a closure member which has the outlet opening and which is attached to the open end portion of the main body. Since the known powder dispenser does not have any means for controlling the quantity of the powdered material to be delivered through the outlet opening, the power dispenser suffers from a problem that the quantity of the powdered material to be actually delivered considerably varies depending upon the specific characteristic of a shaking action of the powder dispenser.
JP-Y2-7-13574 proposes a seasoning dispenser as an improved powder dispenser having a structural arrangement capable of solving the problem described above. Described more specifically, this seasoning dispenser includes a main body, and a closure member which is attached to an open end portion of the main body and which has outlet holes formed therethrough to delivery a powdered seasoning material. The closure member is provided with a guide tube fixed thereto and having a relatively small diameter. When the closure member is attached to the main body, the guide tube extends into the interior space of the main body, for guiding the seasoning material within the main body, to the outlet holes. Further, a movable body is disposed between the upper open end of the guide tube and the outlet holes of the closure member, such that the movable member closes the upper open end of the guide tube when the main body of the dispenser is oriented downwards, and is moved apart from the upper open end toward the outlet holes.
In the seasoning dispenser constructed as described above, the seasoning material accommodated in the main body is introduced into the guide tube through its lower open end remote from its upper open end on the side of the outlet holes, when the main body is inverted from the upwardly oriented position to the downwardly oriented position, that is, turned upside down. A quantity of the powdered seasoning material which is thus introduced into the guide tube is fed to the outlet opening. As long as the guide tube has a constant length, a constant quantity of the powdered seasoning material is delivered from the outlet opening each time the main body is turned between the upwardly and downwardly oriented positions.
In the constant-quantity powder dispenser in the form of the seasoning dispenser disclosed in the above-identified publication, the main body of the powder dispenser must be inverted from its upwardly oriented position to the downwardly oriented position, to deliver the powdered material (powdered seasoning material) from the outlet holes. For delivering a desired quantity of the powdered material, the main body of the powder dispenser must be repeatedly turned up and down a relatively large number of times, requiring the user to perform a cumbersome manipulation of the powder dispenser. Thus, this powder dispenser is still unsatisfactory in respect of the ease of use.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a constant-quantity powder dispenser which permits easy, efficient and continuous delivery of a constant quantity of a powdered material, without a cumbersome manipulation.
The above object may be achieved according to the principle of this invention, which provides a constant-quantity powder dispenser which has a main body accommodating a mass of a powdered material and which is arranged to deliver the powdered material through an outlet opening, by a shaking action of the main body, the powder dispenser comprising: (a) a valve seat in which the outlet opening is open in the main body; (b) a closure ball movable to be seated on the valve seat to close the outlet opening at a position within an interior space of the main body; and (c) a coil spring disposed within the interior space of the main body, so as to extend from the valve seat, the coil spring having a coil accommodating the closure ball therein such that the closure ball is movable within the coil, between a first position and a second position, in a vertical direction while the main body is oriented downwards with the outlet opening being open downwards outwardly of the main body, the closure ball being seated on the valve seat when the closure ball being located at the first position, and being spaced apart from the valve seat in the vertical direction, to permit the powdered material to be delivered through the outlet opening, when the closure ball is located at the second position, wherein the closure ball is reciprocated in the vertical direction between the first and second positions to deliver the powdered material through the outlet opening, when the main body is reciprocated in the vertical direction while the main body is oriented downwards with the outlet opening being open downwards outwardly of the main body.
In the constant-quantity powder dispenser of the present invention constructed as described above, the outlet opening is closed by the closure ball when the main body is oriented downwards with the outlet opening being open downwards outwardly of the main body. Accordingly, the powdered material is prevented from being delivered through the outlet opening, when the main body is merely turned or inclined such that the outlet opening is open obliquely downwards, or merely turned upside down such that the outlet opening is opened substantially downwards. The powdered material is delivered through the outlet opening, only when the main body is shaken or reciprocated in the vertical direction to reciprocate the closure ball in the vertical direction within the coil of the coil spring, while the main body is held in the downwardly inclined or inverted attitude. Namely, the movement of the closure ball away from the valve seat permits the outlet opening to be opened at a position within the interior space of the main body, permitting a delivery of the powered material out of the interior space through the outlet opening.
The constant-quantity powder dispenser of the present invention constructed as described above is advantageous particularly in that a multiplicity of inlet apertures are formed between the adjacent helical turns of the coil spring, which helical turns are spaced apart from each other in the axial direction of the coil spring, so that the inlet apertures are arranged in a spaced-apart relation with each other over the entire length of the coil. These inlet apertures have a considerably larger total area of opening for easer entry of the powdered material, than the inlet apertures formed through a hollow portion of a hollow member which may be used as a guide member for guiding the closure ball within the main body. Accordingly, the amount of the powdered material that can be introduced into the coil spring through those inlet apertures of the coil spring is advantageously increased. Further, the coil spring may be formed of a spring steel or a hard synthetic resin exhibiting a spring characteristic. In this instance, the coil spring has a sufficiently high degree of mechanical strength, even in the presence of the inlet apertures having a large total area of opening.
Accordingly, the present constant-quantity powdered-tea dispenser of the present embodiment permits an easy, efficient and continuous delivery of the powdered material by a desired total quantity by merely shaking the main body in the vertical direction a suitable number of times, with the main body kept in the downwardly inclined or inverted attitude, unlike the conventional constant-quantity powder dispenser which must be repeatedly turned between its upwardly and downwardly oriented positions. In addition, the present powder dispenser permits a comparatively large quantity of delivery of the powdered material, without a problem of deterioration of durability of its coil spring and other components, which would be caused by insufficient mechanical strength of the components.
According to one preferred form of this invention, the constant-quantity powder dispenser further comprises a stop member which defines the second position, by abutting contact of the closure ball with the stop member during an upward movement of the closure ball while the outlet opening is open downwards outwardly of the main body. In this instance, the stop member is held by the coil spring such that the stop member is displaceable in the vertical direction relative to the coil spring.
In the constant-quantity powder dispenser according to the preferred form of this invention described just above, the above-indicated second position, which is the uppermost position of the closure ball while the main body is oriented downward with the outlet opening being open downwards outwardly of the main body, can be changed in the vertical direction, by displacing the stop member relative to the coil spring in the vertical direction. Accordingly, the reciprocating stroke of the closure ball between the first and second positions can be adjusted as needed, and the quantity of the powdered material to be delivered through the outlet opening per one reciprocating movement of the closure ball can be changed as desired, by simply adjusting the position of the stop member relative to the coil spring.
According to another preferred form of this invention, the main body includes an upper open end portion having a large opening larger than the outlet opening, and the powder dispenser further comprises a closure member which has the outlet opening and which is removably attached to the upper open end portion so as to close the large opening except a part thereof corresponding to the outlet opening. In this case, the coil is fixed to an inner surface of the closure member.
In the constant-quantity powder dispenser according to the preferred form of the invention described just above, the coil spring can be removed from the main body, together with the closure member, when the closure member is removed from the main body. This arrangement enables the user of the powder dispenser to easily and smoothly perform operations, such as an operation to fill the main body with the powdered material, and an operation to take out a relatively large quantity of the powdered material from the main body, while the large opening of the main body larger than the outlet opening is held open with the closure member removed from the main body, and such that the operations are not disturbed by the presence of the coil spring and the closure ball. In addition, the closure member and the coil spring fixed together constitute an integral unit, so that the provision of the closure member neither increases the number of components of the powder dispenser, and nor lowers the efficiency of assembling of the powder dispenser.